Amino sugars are vital components of a large number of antibiotics, many of which are of immense current interest as antitumor and anti-infection agents. In many cases the amino sugars carry a cis-vicinal hydroxyamino moiety for which there are currently no reliable direct stereo- and regio-selective approaches. Unsaturated pyranosides bearing anallylic hydroxyl or amino group may be readily obtained and converted into amides, urethanes or imidate esters. These derivatives upon iodonium ion-induced cyclisation afford oxozolines (or analogues thereof) in which the oxygen and nitrogen functions are now necessarily vicinal and cis related. Specific targets for which synthetic methodology will be explored include garosamine, danosamine, sibirosamine and lincomycin.